


I am Groot

by starspangledmanwithaplan



Category: Guardians of the Galaxy (Movies), Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types, The Avengers - Ambiguous Fandom
Genre: Angst, F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Fluff and Humor, Fluff without Plot, Gen, Implied Sexual Content, Implied Smut, Language, Light Angst, Mild Language, Reader-Insert, Reader-Interactive, possibly more to come - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-18
Updated: 2019-03-27
Packaged: 2019-06-12 16:35:18
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 5,532
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15343950
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/starspangledmanwithaplan/pseuds/starspangledmanwithaplan
Summary: When you and Peter started dating, nobody expected Groot to be so attached to you.





	1. Chapter 1

* * *

Groot was waiting for you, right outside the door, bashfully kicking his feet back and forth, one at a time. You were running a towel through your freshly-washed hair and not watching where you were going. So, when you almost crushed Groot, you gave a shriek and hopped back.

“I am Groot,” he apologized, his eyes falling to the floor.

“Jesus,” you panted, your heart hammering under your hand. “You can’t stand right there, Groot.”

He reached over to fiddle with a small twit on his arm. “I am Groot.”

Guilt started to turn your stomach. “I missed you, too.”

Given how small he was, he smiled as wide as he possibly could, his eyes wide and shining as he looked up at you. “I am Groot.”

“Just don’t tell Peter about this,” you chuckled.

“I am Groot,” he vowed, hand placed over his heart.

“Don’t tell Peter what?” the aforementioned man asked.

You gave a huff of irritation at the way your heart started pounding again. “I’m gettin’ real tired of no one knowing how to knock ‘round here,” you growled, giving Groot a wink.

“Were you guys talkin’ ‘bout me?” Peter was leaning against the door frame, arms crossed, one foot kicked over the other, and you had to fight the urge to saunter over and drop your towel.

“I am Groot,” he lied expertly.

Peter gave a knowing smile. “Bullshit.”

“Language, Peter,” you warned him, bending over to pick up Groot. He climbed onto your damp shoulder and held onto your hair as you walked.

His voice was soft in your ear when he said, “I am Groot.”

“I know,” you giggled.

“What’d he say?” Peter was wearing a scowl as he stood tall.

You shot your boyfriend a wink. “It’s a secret.”

It was Peter’s turn to huff. “Y/N…”

“Peter…” you mocked him.

“I am Groot,” he growled, shoving his head through your hair and sticking his tongue out at Peter.

You moved to drop the towel, but Peter wasn’t having it. His hand shot out and stopped it just as it was about to untuck.

“No, uh uh,” he announced. “That’s not happening with Groot in here.”

“He’s just a baby,” you argued, knowing it would get you nowhere.

“I am Groot.”

Peter arched his brow as he stared at Groot. “You are, too, a baby. Now, come on. Let’s give Y/N some privacy.”

Groot glared at the hand that was extended. “I am Groot.”

You held your hand out and shook your head as he climbed off of your shoulder. “I’ll only be a couple minutes. Why don’t you go and see Rocket? He won’t admit it, but he missed you.”

“I am Groot.” He pressed a kiss to your palm before jumping down and running out of the room.

“See? No harm done,” you teased, poking Peter in the chest.

Peter caught your hips in his hands and gave you a smirk. “And on that note…”

Before you could even blink, Peter was kissing you, slow and passionate, stealing the breath from your lungs. You pulled back and gave a hum of appreciation.

“Why didn’t you just say that’s what you wanted?”

“He’s just a baby,” Peter scoffed. “I didn’t want to corrupt him… yet.” He shot you a wink before bending over to pick you up, throwing you over his shoulder before kicking the door shut.


	2. Chapter 2

Thunderstorms, you could handle. Hell, you had survived the terror of several tornadoes during your childhood. But meteor showers were different, while in space, that was. Peter was a great pilot, as was Rocket, but this particular storm took both of their piloting talents. Even then, it was a very turbulent ride.

You couldn’t handle being in the cockpit any longer, your stomach was pitching around, much like the ship you were stuck in. With Groot holding tight to your hair, you stumbled out of the cockpit and down to the room you and Peter shared.

“I am Groot?” he asked, his voice tight.

“I’ll be okay,” you assured him. You dropped to the bed and kicked off your shoes before reaching up to your shoulder.

Groot hopped into your palm at the exact moment that the ship rolled to its side. Acting quickly, your other hand shot out, making sure he didn’t fall off as you tumbled off the bed, landing on the metal floor, your hip screaming in agony.

Groot pushed out from between your hands with a little grunt. “I am Groot!”

You gave a heavy groan as you tried pushing off the floor. “Son of a bitch,” you ground out through your teeth.

“I am Groot?” His small hand was on your chin and he was peering up at you with wide, caring eyes.

“I can’t get up.” Pain took hold of your voice, making it thick and gritty. You kept trying to push up, but your leg was tingling too badly.

With a serious look, Groot gave a nod. “I am Groot.” And with that, he tore out of the room as fast as his little legs could carry him. You called out after him, telling him to come back, that it was too dangerous for him to be out there right then. You should have known better, he was too damn stubborn.

“Just like his dad,” you grumbled to yourself.

Still not ready to give up, you maneuvered your other leg beneath your body, turned to your stomach, and pushed up with both hands. You had just gripped the edge of the bed when Groot returned, perched on Drax’s shoulder.

“Y/N,” Drax’s voice boomed throughout the room. “What are you doing on the floor?”

You couldn’t help the frustrated laugh that burst out. “I thought it would be a nice change of scenery.”

“The floor is dirty,” he noted. “Probably has not been cleaned since we were on Xandar.”

“I am Groot.” He sounded extremely disappointed in Drax.

“She does not require assistance. You heard her, she is enjoying the scenery,” Drax droned on.

You let go of the bed and rolled to your side with a low and heavy groan. “Damn it, Drax. Help me!”

Groot jumped onto the bed as Drax bent down to haul you off the floor. “I am Groot.”

“I am being careful.” After securing you in his arms, he set you gently on the bed, watching curiously as pain flashed across your face. “Humans are so weak and frail.”

“I am Groot!” he roared angrily.

You grabbed him as he tore off after Drax. “He’s not wrong, Groot. Calm down.”

“I am Groot.” His eyes were full of concern as he looked up at you.

Forcing a smile, you shook your head. “I’ll be okay, I promise.”

“What’s happening in here?” Peter wondered as he came into the room.

Before you could say anything, Drax said, “Your mate was on the floor. Groot said your horrible piloting made her fall.”

“I am Groot,” he clarified with a grunt.

“Watch your mouth,” you and Peter said at the same time.

“I’m fine, Peter,” you said through your teeth.

He rolled his eyes and crossed the room, dropping to the bed a moment later. “You’re not fine.”

“Are we through the meteor shower?” you blurted out, noticing that the ship was no longer pitching about.

“I got us through it,” Peter said, his chest puffed up.

“I beg to differ,” Rocket announced, his nails clicking on the floor as he came to the side of the bed. “It was my advanced piloting skills that got us -”

“Oh, was it now?” Peter shot back. “I seem to remember almost getting crushed by -”

Rocket rolled his eyes. “It came outta nowhere!”

“I am Groot,” he hollered, eyes flicking between man and raccoon.

“I’m fine,” you insisted. In fact, it was quite the opposite. “I just… I think it’s a bruise. No big deal.”

Drax grabbed your hips. “I want to see this bruise. It must look so different on human skin.”

Peter slapped away the large hands that were on you. “Back off, Drax,” he warned, his voice low and dark.

“You kiddin’?” Rocket scoffed. “You can’t just go and grab her like that.”

Groot was shaking his head and racing down the bed. “I am Groot.”

“Now you’ve done it,” Rocket muttered, his paw shooting out to grab Groot. “You pissed him off.”

“What did I do?” Drax was genuinely confused, and it just made you laugh.

“Guys, stop it,” you gasped, holding your side right above your hip. “It hurts too much to laugh.”

“Rocket, go get that bottle of blue pills,” Peter ordered.

Rocket bent at the waist with a flourish of his hand. “Is there anything else I can do for your majesty?”

You snorted in amusement, slapping a hand over your mouth when Peter scowled at you. “I would appreciate a bottle of that sweet concoction you made the other night.”

Wearing his best smile and winking at you, Rocket turned to you. “As the lady wishes.”

“I am Groot,” he protested as Rocket and Drax started to leave the room. Rocket muttered something under his breath that you couldn’t quite hear. Whatever it was had calmed Groot down enough to stop him from calling for you.

Peter was lifting up your shirt a moment later, hissing at the way your skin had already started to discolor. “I don’t know, babe. It doesn’t look great.”

You hissed as he ran the back of his knuckles along it. “It’s just a deep bruise. I’ll be back on my feet in a few days.”

“You better be.” He tried to have a stoic expression, but you could read it in his eyes, in the way his bottom lip quirked to the left; he was worried about you.

With your hands stretched out and your fingers wiggling, Peter helped you to sit up. You hissed the entire way, but once you were upright, you wrapped your arms around Peter’s neck and shoulders, and gave him a sweet kiss.

“You think a bruise is going to stop me, Quill?” you hummed, your forehead resting on his.

Peter’s hand slid around your waist and rested against your lower back. “I know it ain’t. I just… I worry.”

“Worry no more,” Rocket interrupted proudly.

“What is that?” you asked loudly, making Peter turn around.

Rocket was wielding a staff, one that looked every inch like it had belonged to Ronan. “To help you get around the ship, my lady,” he chuckled harshly as he bowed.

“Isn’t that Ronan’s?” Peter ripped it away from Rocket and started examining it.

“I mean, it  _was_ ,” Rocket sniggered. “It’s not like he’s gonna use it anymore.”

“I am Groot,” he added.

You couldn’t stop from laughing, no matter how bad it hurt. “Ronan did have it coming.”

Peter rolled his eyes. “That’s not the point.”

“I am Groot.” He stomped his foot before running over and kicking Peter’s.

“Easy there, tiger,” Rocket said as he bent over and pulled Groot off of Peter’s shoe.

Setting down the bottle of Rocket’s unnamed sweet concoction onto the table, Drax let loose a hearty laugh. “Let him have his fun with Quill. I would like to see it.”

Rocket handed you the aforementioned bottle of pills. “Take it easy with those,” he warned. “Start with one. If you need more than that, you need to see an actual doctor.”

You looked curiously around the room as you opened the bottle. “Who’s driving the ship?”

“You turned on the autopilot, right, Rocket?” Peter asked, glaring at the raccoon.

Rocket blew a raspberry before answering. “Totally.” And then he was running out the door on all fours, cursing under his breath. Drax followed after, eager to see why Rocket was skittering away.

Peter set the staff against the wall and dropped a kiss to your head. “Relax, okay?”

“I am Groot.” He looked up at Peter and was nodding.

“Thanks, pal. I appreciate it.”

After swallowing one of the pills, you yawned loudly as it began to take immediate effect. “Make sure Rocket doesn’t kill us all.”

You were already lying down, rolled to the side that hadn’t crashed into the floor, your eyes already falling closed. Groot was resting in the crook of your shoulder, your hair being used as a blanket. The last thing you could remember, Peter was covering you with a blanket and smearing a kiss to your temple.


	3. Chapter 3

You were snuggled into Peter, his arm around your shoulders, your head on his chest, his heart pounding rhythmically against your cheek, your hand on his firm stomach, one of your legs draped over his, his large hand resting on your thigh. It was perfect, just the two of you - and Groot - for a handful of hours. Drax and Rocket were out, having a few drinks and gambling in the small town several miles from the ship.

Peter had suggested watching a movie. “A classic on Earth; Footloose.”

“I’m from Earth,” you snorted, slapping him playfully in the chest. “You don’t need to keep explaining things.”

“Sorry,” he mumbled, dropping a kiss between your eyes.

Situated comfortably on your bed, Peter had pressed play, and from the moment his hand fell to your leg, Groot had glared at it, his little fingers drumming on your other thigh, close to your knee. You weren’t paying attention to him, not really. Your eyes were on Kevin Bacon, dancing in the barn, putting everything he had into it.

Right at the end of the scene, Peter huffed, “What the hell, man?”

“I am Groot,” he ground out angrily, putting everything he had into shoving Peter’s hand off your thigh.

“I’ll put my hands where I damn well please.” As if to prove his point, he put his hand a little higher than where it had been.

You gave a snorting laugh when Groot tried to push Peter’s hand away again. It would have worked, too, if only Peter hadn’t increased the pressure. Groot was grunting with the effort, his little feet slipping on the blankets.

“I am Groot,” he roared, putting everything he had into getting rid of Peter’s hand.

“Stop it, Groot,” you chastised him. “You, too, Peter. That hurts.” They both apologized at the same time, but continued to glare at one another.

You couldn’t help but giggle at the two of them, glowering at one another, trying to get the other to break or give in. It was comical. At six feet, two inches, Peter towered above - just about - everyone he met. Groot, as a sapling, was ten inches tall. Just by looking at them, someone would think that Peter would be the victor, and they would be sorely mistaken.

To your surprise, Peter sighed and moved his hand out of the way. Groot was smiling in triumph as he climbed onto your thigh and sat cross-legged.

“I am Groot,” he requested, staring in awe at the large screen.

“But we just watched it,” Peter protested, his hand already reaching for the controller.

You snuggled closer to Peter and pressed your lips to his ear. “Please, Peter.”

Peter shifted on the bed as he punched the button with his thumb. “Anythin’ you want, darlin’.”

“I am Groot,” he asked curiously as Kevin Bacon started dancing.

“Yes,” you giggled. “All men from Earth dance like that.”

Groot spun around on your thigh and started jumping up and down. “I am Groot, I am GROOT!”

Peter was shaking his head. “No, absolutely not.”

“Come on, baby,” you urged playfully. “Show him your moves.”

“I am Groot,” he laughed, his little hands in the air above his head, doing his best to mimic the dancing he had seen.

“You’ve got this, bud,” Peter assured him, all out laughing when Groot jumped off your leg and landed gracefully on his knees.

The movie was almost forgotten as the two of you watched Groot. He was thoroughly enjoying himself for several minutes before stopping all of a sudden, going completely still.

“Why are you laughing?” It was Drax, and he sounded very confused.

Your hand was over your heart. “It’s Groot,” was all you could say.

“He’s trying to dance like Kevin Bacon,” Peter added, completing your sentence.

Drax stared hard at Groot. “He does not dance.”

“Come on, Groot,” you urged, your fingers brushing against the side of his face. “Show Drax, he’ll love it.”

His eyes were the only things that moved; quickly, from side to side, indicating that no, he would not show Drax his dance moves.

“Show me,” Drax all but demanded, his tone heavy and authoritative.

“I think it’s something he doesn’t want anyone else to see,” Peter said gently, trying to diffuse the situation.

“He showed you.”

You managed to slide off the bed without knocking Groot over. Once standing in front of Drax, you gave him a warm smile. “Come on, show me your winnings.”

Drax was a simple creature and couldn’t stop from grinning when you paid attention to him. “How do you know I won anything?”

“When haven’t you won anything?”

Hooking your arm in Drax’s, you turned him around, knowing without a doubt that Groot would start dancing again. It was only confirmed by Peter’s chuckles following the two of you down the corridor.


	4. Chapter 4

[ ](https://66.media.tumblr.com/921568e321007bd114c62908b0c29773/tumblr_p6700l8Ny71uhh267o2_400.gif)

“I am Groot?” asked the young sapling. 

You had been staring at the stars for a handful of hours at that point, your eyelids growing heavy with every passing minute. You should probably head inside the ship and sleep in the bed you shared with Peter, but the stars were too beautiful to miss. 

“I don’t really have a favorite,” you hummed, rubbing at your eyes with the back of your hands. 

Groot was sprawled out in your hair, the long strands serving as a blanket and pillow. “I am Groot,” he admired, pointing off to the right. “I am Groot.”

“And you haven’t been back since?” 

He had a sad look in his eyes as he shook his head.

Pushing up to your elbow, you cupped your hand under Groot as he slid from your hair. “I’m so sorry.”

“I am Groot,” he mumbled, holding on to your thumb as you sat up. 

“We could take you,” you offered, sliding your finger under his chin.

Groot gave a half-hearted shrug when his eyes met yours. “I am Groot.”

The news that there was there was nothing there, surprised you. “Oh, I didn’t know. I… I’m sorry, Groot.” 

“I am Groot.” And with that, Groot jumped down and shuffled away, dropping out of sight a moment later. 

You wanted to go after him and make sure he was alright, but he wanted to be left alone for a while. You didn’t blame him, not being able to go back home wasn’t something you liked to talk about either. With a sigh, you stood, swiping at your butt to clean off whatever intergalactic dusting coated the ship. You were about climb down when Peter’s voice stopped you. 

“Where you goin’, pretty lady?” Thanks to the mods on his boots, Peter was floating in mid-air. 

You were smiling before you even turned around. “I was just coming to find you.” 

“Oh yeah?” he asked, bottom lip quirking. 

You hummed, stepping to the edge of the ship. “Something’s going on with Groot.”

Peter’s eyebrows pulled together as his arms curled around your waist. “What happened?”

“We were looking at the stars,” you quasi-explained with a shrug, your arms resting on his shoulders, fingers twirling in his hair. “He mentioned his home planet.”

“Oh, that,” Peter sighed, the ground growing closer as the two of you descended. “Yeah, he doesn’t like to talk about it.” 

“And there’s nothing for him to go back to,” you added sadly.

Peter pressed a kiss to your temple as he held you. “It’s harder for him right now than before, bein’ small and all.”

“Yeah, I suppose you’re right,” you hummed, turning to kiss Peter’s jaw just as your feet touched the ground. 

There was music coming from the ship, a song you couldn’t quite name, but you found yourself swaying to it. Peter’s hands were on your hips and his lips were by your ear, gruff hums spilling from him as the two of you danced. 

The song had just ended and Peter’s lips were brushing against yours when Rocket and Groot came rushing out of the ship, Drax’s guttural voice following them. “You can  _ too _ see me!”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa,” Peter called out. “What is going on?” 

Rocket and Groot hid behind you, Rocket gripping one of your legs with Groot crawling up the side of your body and into your hair. 

Drax was seething as he glared at Peter. “They were saying they could not see me.”

“Okay?” Peter looked at you over his shoulder, but all you did was shrug. “Look, Drax, you know they like to pick on you, but -”

“I am not invisible, Quill!” Drax shouted, eyes flicking to Groot, then Rocket, and finally to you, pleading and somewhat sad. “I am not!”

So, you’re a terrible person and started laughing. “I mean, you did try to convince me that you were invisible the other day.”

“That was different,” he insisted, voice a bit softer since he was talking to you and not Peter. 

“Not really, man,” Rocket sniggered, his whiskers poking into your leg as he peered around it. “You wanted to be invisible, so we just went along with it.”

“I am Groot,” Groot pointed out flatly. 

Drax shifted on his feet as Peter clapped him on the shoulder. “Kid’s got a point. You can’t have it both ways, man.”

“But the two of you don’t need to be little assholes about it, either,” you chastised them, pulling Groot from your shoulder. “Deal?”

“Deal,” Rocket begrudgingly agreed.

“I am Groot,” Groot sighed, rolling his eyes.

You poked Groot in the chest as you dropped to your knees. “I mean it,” you insisted even though the two of them were like children and would be back to teasing Drax in a handful of minutes. 

Groot gave you a big smile. “I am Groot,” he assured you before jumping out of your hand and into Rocket’s. 

“So, yeah, I got… that… that  _ thing _ to look at,” Rocket unsuccessfully chortled. 

You rolled your eyes as Rocket and Groot tore off into the ship, Peter calling out after them to behave. “Don’t bother, Peter,” you giggled, standing tall, hand on his chest, pressed to his side. 

Drax stared at the two of you. “Are you going to mate?”

“Hey!” Peter hollered while your mouth fell open and you stared at him. “That’s none of your business.”

“I have always been curious about the act of copulation between humans.” Drax informed you. 

Peter’s heart was jack-hammering under your palm. “What we do in our private time is… it’s not for your viewing pleasure,” he ground out. 

“I assure you, Quill, I get no pleasure out of it.”

“Drax,” you rasped, finally able to find your voice. “Ha- have you seen…  _ that _ a lot with different, uh, species?”

“What are you  _ talking _ about?” Peter said, a harsh tone to his voice. “Of course he hasn’t. He’s just…  _ weird _ .” 

Drax’s smile said otherwise. “I have. We had a special viewing center where the whole village could watch.”

“Okay,” you sighed, dragging the word out for longer than necessary. “That’s just -”

“Creepy,” Peter finished for you.

Drax shrugged his shoulders with an indifferent expression on his face. “Just thought I would ask,” he muttered in disappointment as he turned back to the ship.

You and Peter stared at the space Drax had been standing for several long moments. It was only because Peter’s hand twitched against your back that you moved. 

“You don’t  _ really _ think he was serious, do you?” he asked, voice low. 

“I don’t know, and I don’t want to find out,” you answered, shuddering at the mental image that just zipped through your brain. 

Peter’s mood changed the second your fingers dug into his chest. “Well, we could always find someplace different to go.” 

“Peter,” you huffed in faux-annoyance, tipping your head back to look up at your boyfriend. “The children -”

“Can keep themselves occupied for a while,” he growled before kissing you, hand on the back of your neck. 

You clung to him as the thrusters on his boots powered on, carrying the two of you to the other side of the island where you spent the night getting lost in one another.


	5. Chapter 5

It was the extra heat on the back of your neck that woke you. 

“Peter,” you hissed, poking your boyfriend in the stomach. 

He grunted, his muscles flexing at the intrusion. “Wha?” he mumbled, sleep thick on his tongue.

“I need you to do something for me,” you rasped. 

Peter moaned low in his throat as he rolled over. “Whatever you need, my lady.”

“No, not  _ that _ ,” you snapped, glaring at him in the dimly-lit room. “Is Groot in my hair?” 

His brows furrowed together as he leaned over you, his hand pushing your hair out of the way. “Huh, would ya look at that.”

“I kinda can’t,” you bit out in frustration. 

Peter rolled his eyes as he touched the sapling. “Oh, that’s not good.”

“What’s not?” Panic blossomed painfully in your chest at the sight of Peter climbing over you to get a better view of.... “Is it Groot?”

“Yeah, it’s him, alright,” Peter sighed. “He’s got a fever.”

“Oh no,” you whined in empathy. “What should we do?”

Peter pushed your hair back where it was and shrugged. “Not much, I suppose. Just let him ride it out.”

“And what do you suggest I do? It’s not like I can just lie here until he feels better. Who knows how long that will take.” Truth be told, you were worried about Groot. You wanted to take care of him, help him with whatever he needed help with. 

“Babe,” Peter huffed. “He’ll be okay.”

“But… what if I have to pee,” you giggled, covering your mouth to keep from waking Groot. 

It must not have worked, because the next thing you heard was the young sapling shifting in your hair. “I am Groot,” he whined, his small, hot hands on your scalp as he stood. “I am Groot.”

“I know, buddy,” Peter lamented, the back of his index finger pressed to Groot’s forehead. “I’ll go see if Rocket has anything.”

“I am Groot,” he sighed heavily, stepping out of your hair. 

You rolled over and propped up on your elbow. “Is there anything I can do?”

“I am Groot,” he groaned, his eyes squeezing shut, swaying on his feet. 

You reached out and caught Groot in your hand, wincing at the how  _ hot _ he was. “Jesus, that’s  _ really _ not good.” You shoved off of the bed and went into the bathroom where you filled a bowl with lukewarm water. With Groot still in your palm, you lowered him into the water and started bathing him. 

“If it works on humans…” you mumbled to yourself. 

“Rocket is gonna head into town and get a few things,” Peter announced as he came into the room. “How’s he doin’?”

You shrugged and shook your head. “He passed out while walking, so I’m going to say he’s not doing so great.”

As soon as the water started growing cool, you pulled Groot out and wrapped him in a towel, holding him against your chest as you turned, looking up at Peter. 

“He’ll be okay, babe,” he vowed, tucking some hair behind your ear. “Why don’t we get him back in bed, huh?” 

You crawled into bed and pulled your hair out of Peter’s way as he pressed himself against your back. Once he was comfortable, you twirled your hair around until it loosely resembled a bird’s nest, smiling when Groot crawled out of the towel and into your hair. He slowly burrowed into it, sighing heavily as soon as he was situated. 

“You good, buddy?” Peter inquired, patting the mound under your hair. 

“I am Groot,” he mumbled tiredly. “I am Groot.”

“That’s good,” Peter hummed tiredly.

A soft sigh left you as the weight of Peter’s arm settled on your waist and his steady breathing fanned against the back of your neck. Both Peter and Groot were sleeping, soft snores emerging from your hair every so often, echoing Peter’s louder ones. You tried falling asleep, but you couldn’t. You were too worried about Groot. Even before, when he was big, you hadn’t seen him sick. 

“Same thing happened last time he was a sapling,” Rocket informed you softly. He jumped up onto the bed and peered into your hair. 

“Oh? What happened then?” 

Rocket gave a half-smile before covering Groot. “Gave him a bath and some stupid ass expensive water to drink.”

“Well, he’s had a bath,” you said with a yawn. “Now, all he needs is that stupid ass expensive water.”

“It’s in the med bay. But we probably shouldn’t wake him.”

Your eyelids were getting heavy and it was getting harder to keep them open. “In the morning.”

Rocket shifted on the bed, preparing to jump down, but your hand on his much smaller paw stopped him. 

“You can stay,” you hummed. “If you want.”

“Peter won’t approve,” Rocket teased with a wink. 

You scoffed and pulled down the blankets. “I can handle Peter.”

“You sure can,” Rocket sniggered. He moved under the blankets and was getting comfortable when you gave up the fight and fell asleep. 

Peter’s shout of, “What the  _ hell _ ?” woke you. 

You sat straight up, heart hammering painfully against your ribs, and a surprised cry caught in your throat. 

Groot landed on the bed with a soft  _ thud _ . “I am Groot!” he grunted, glaring at Peter. 

“I second that,” you rasped, hand over your heart. 

Peter shot out of the bed on one foot, furiously scratching the other. “Somethin’s in the bed!”

Rocket scurried up the bed, a large lump under the sheets, emerging with a victorious smile and a raspy laugh. “Just me, Quill.”

“God damnit, Rocket,” Peter ground out, murder in his eyes. “What are you doing in our bed in the  _ first place _ ?”

Rocket’s beady eyes landed on you. 

“Ah, yes, that’s uh, because I told him he could stay,” you informed Peter.

“I am Groot,” he added, clearly feeling better. 

“No, it was most definitely  _ not _ a sleepover!” Peter yelled. “Shit, what did you  _ do _ to me?” Peter’s foot was bright red and puffy. 

“Just a little bit of the local’s itching powder,” Rocket divulged. You stared at the genetically-altered raccoon, making him swallow heavily. “Don’t worry, it washes off. And before you ask, Y/N, no, I didn’t get any on you. Just Peter.” He started laughing again, a stuttering rasp, his nose scrunching and eyes narrowing.

Drax came into the room at that point, clearly unamused he had missed out on everything. “Why did you not tell me we were all spending the night in here? I would have liked to participate. I would have brought snacks.”

“It was not a sleepover,” Peter repeated himself, much louder than before.

“I am Groot,” he said, pointing out the obvious.

You couldn’t help but agree. “He’s got a point, Peter. When eighty percent of the crew sleeps in one room, it’s  _ technically _ -”

Peter rolled his eyes so hard you were surprised they didn’t fall out. “Out, everyone get out!” 

“Can we all sleep in here tonight?” Drax inquired. “It will be my first sleepo-”

“God, no,” Peter seethed. “Get. Out!” 

Rocket took hold of a giggling Groot and jumped off the bed, kicking Drax on his way. “Come on. The  _ parents _ need to talk.”

“But I -”

“Drax, please,” you implored, giving him a stern look. Drax sighed heavily, but left nonetheless. 

Peter slammed the door and it made you jump. “You know I don’t like Rocket in my bed.”

“Peter, come on,” you murmured, climbing off of the bed, careful to avoid the glittering white granules. “Groot was so sick and Rocket was worried.”

A laugh tore its way out of Peter. “Rocket? Worried? That’s not an emotion he’s capable of feeling.”

You leveled your boyfriend with a glare. “Just because he doesn’t let  _ you _ see that he’s anything more than a raccoon doesn’t mean he’s that way with the rest of us. You ever stop and think that maybe, just  _ maybe _ , he’s that way because that’s how you treat him?” 

Peter took a step back and held his hands up. “Hey, he dumped itching powder on  _ my _ foot. I deserve to be a bit pissed off.”

“You know what, yeah, you can be pissed about that,” you grumbled as you ripped off your pajama pants and shoved on a pair of jeans. “But what about all the times before that?” A pair of socks and your boots were next. 

“Whoa, where you goin?” he asked, panic tainting his voice. 

You pulled your hair back into a knot before practically throwing on a jacket. “Out,” was your gritty answer. “And I  _ highly _ suggest you don’t follow me.”


End file.
